Waterford City and County Council · Council Meeting held on 9th July 2026 · 9 July 2026
A vote on a motion calling on the Government to abolish the Universal Social Charge from 1 January 2027, funded through a package of efficiency savings, procurement reform, multinational top-up tax revenue and a time-limited transition account.
Summary written by AI from the minutes. The motion as recorded follows.
“That Waterford City & County Council calls on the Government to abolish the Universal Social Charge (USC) from January 1st, 2027. This will be funded through a fiscally responsible Resilience Package, comprising of • Identified recurring efficiency savings • procurement reform • grant transparency • multinational top-up tax revenue (BEPS Pillar II QDTT) and a small, capped, time- limited Transition Account (2027 to 2030) funded only by certified windfall corporation tax, with quarterly Oireachtas reporting on revenues as the scheme rolls out • It will include a statutory sunset clause for (Transition Account) which closes at end of 2030 All of the above can be achieved while ensuring frontline critical public services are protected. If passed, that this motion is sent to the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation for their consideration. This motion if passed to be circulated to all councils throughout the country”.
Proposed by Cllr. Kelly; seconded by Cllr. Donal Barry.
The minutes record: The Motion was carried 29 votes to 1 with 1 abstention and 1 absent.
| Party | Tá | Níl | Staon | Didn't vote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fine Gael | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Independent | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sinn Féin | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Fianna Fáil | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Labour Party | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Social Democrats | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Tá, Níl and Staon are the minutes’ for, against and abstained. “Didn’t vote” covers councillors on the council that day whom the minutes don’t list under any option, for any reason. Parties are as of the meeting day.